Don't Make Me Wait
by Astrophile
Summary: A small collection of AUs about Wally and Artemis. Prompts are welcome!
1. Favourite Worst Nightmare

Wally sat up, his heart racing erratically. Gasping back scared breaths, he frantically searched around the room, trying to place himself in the world. He managed to tell himself he was at his home, in his bedroom. Rain was hammering down outside, but the sound doesn't register in his mind, his frantic breathing blocking out everything else. Standing up and reaching into his wardrobe, he pulled on a sweatshirt, before racing out the door.

Artemis was lying awake in her room to Mount Justice, listening to the pitter-patter of the rain as it danced down her window. She got up and walked over to her window, glancing out to look up at the sky. The dark, dangerous looking clouds flashed as lightning struck. Artemis closed her eyes and counted down. 1… 2… 3… Thunder crashed, the sound booming in the distance. She placed a hand against the cool glass and rested her forehead against it. Closing her eyes and listening to the way the rain bounced against the surfaces outside, she jumped when she heard her name. Whispered in the dark, the sound swelled in her ears and she'd know that voice from anywhere. Artemis pounced back, eyes wide open when she looked at the boy standing before her. "Wally?" She gasped, taking in his soaked hair and shoulders; his damp clothes and bare feet; his wide eyes and breathless gasps. Suddenly, he was holding her, his arms wrapped tightly around her. She stood still for a few moments, shocked at what he was doing, but she felt his heart racing beneath his chest; his short breaths and his burning need to just hold her for a little while. His face was turned into her neck and she placed one hand against the back of his head, stroking his dripping hair, the other wrapped around his waist. She realised he was still in his pyjamas and wondered what he was doing in her arms. He abruptly pulled back, out of her arms and was up against the wall, leaning against it whilst taking deep breaths. He was out of her reach in the blink of an eye and Artemis watched him try to calm himself.

Approaching him slowly, she reached him and he looked at her, staring intently into her eyes as his breaths became more even. They stood like that for a minute, watching each other, before Wally was once again breathing at a normal rate. He dropped his gaze and didn't meet her eyes whilst she searched her face. His face lit up as lightning struck outside, his freckles stark against the white from the sudden light. Artemis silently counted, 1… 2. Thunder filled the silence between the two, the sound consuming the room. Once it passed, Artemis reached for Wally's hand. He tensed, not expecting the archer's slender hand to fit so perfectly in his own. Gently, she asked "Wally, what are you doing here?" He glanced up at her, but quickly looked away again. He felt defeated and it showed as his shoulders slumped.

"I… I had a nightmare." He shuddered and Artemis watched the shadows play across his face. He was so troubled and Artemis realised that his hand was shaking in hers, slick with sweat. Pulling him closer, so he wasn't leaning on the wall for support, she rested her hands against his damp sweatshirt before pulling it up. Her only thought was to make him more comfortable and this wet sweatshirt was preventing that from happening. His shirt underneath was damp, but only because the sweatshirt was leaking through. She met little resistance and once she pulled the sweatshirt over his head, Wally leaned in and captured her lips with his. Taking the sweatshirt from her as he pulled his arms out of the sleeves, he cupped her face with his hands and her arms rested on his waist. He took all his need for her and put it into their kiss, met by enough passion to make his mind go blank. Artemis tightened her grip on his shirt, grabbing it into her fists, pulling him closer and closer. Deepening the kiss, Artemis opened her mouth slightly and breathed Wally in, her tongue darting in and meeting his. After a few moments, she broke the kiss and rested her forehead against his. "It's okay, it was just a nightmare. You're safe now."

Holding his hand in hers, she pulled him over to the bed and he climbed in after her. His shirt was a little damp, but Artemis didn't feel it as he held Wally in her arms. The two lay there, face to face, arms wrapped around each other. Artemis watches as Wally relaxed, sleep setting back into his features. He closed his eyes and whispered a thank you to her, before pulling her closer. Lightning struck again, the room illuminating with its brightness. Artemis began to count. 1. Thunder was overhead, the sound so loud that she pressed up against the speedster, using him to shield her ears. She looked up at him as the storm passed over, watching his breaths slow, his chest rising and falling at a pace Artemis was more comfortable with. A sleepy smile played across his face and he suddenly kissed her again, his lips meeting hers briefly. He didn't even open his eyes, just trusted her to be where he wanted her to be. She couldn't hold back a smile and closed her eyes.


	2. I Wanna Be Yours

Hey, here's another chapter for all the spitfire lovers!

Prompt: We're strangers and your hair is perfect except for that one stand that flew lose _and it bothers me _au.

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Wally West was _so_ going to be late for work.

Not only did he leave his apartment 20 minutes late to begin with, but his bus was late and this elevator was taking forever.

Surely it's a crime to have an elevator stop every 2 floors, when you've got to be on the 49th? Not to mention, everybody looked so damn happy on this lift, like the world was their oyster and this elevator was their pearl.

If there's one thing Wally West was not, it was late. The only positive was there was only one more person on the lift, who happened to be getting off at the next floor. Then it was 20 flights of smooth sailing for the Wallman. Wally's death grip on the railing around the walls of the clean, mirrored lift was relaxing slowly and when the last person got off the lift, he even managed a smile.

He took a deep breath and tried to calm his nerves. No doubt someone had picked up the fact he'd failed to make it in to work on time, but considering this was his first strike for the two years he'd worked there, he wouldn't get into much trouble? Wally was running his hands through his bright, ginger hair when the elevator stopped, 17 floors away from his destination.

He exhaled quickly and his shoulders slumped. As his green eyes looked towards the sky as if praying for help, the elevator doors opened. Wally looked down to see the person walk on to the lift and his hand tightened on the railing once again.

The most beautiful woman he'd ever seen strolled in and flipped her blonde mane of hair over her shoulder, pressing the button of her floor number. Standing just in front and to the right of Wally, she was dressed in a green shirt and a black skirt, with black pumps to match, carrying a binder. She stared evenly ahead at the doors of the lift, patiently waiting to get off at the floor before Wally's.

Wally hadn't realised he'd stopped breathing until he felt dizzy from lack of air. He sucked in a lungful of sweet oxygen, loud enough that the blonde turned her head slightly to look at him out of the corner of her eye. Her steel grey eyes looked amused, but she turned back to face the doors again. Wally's eyes took her in slowly, his breathing hitching slightly as he appreciated every inch of her body.

"You know, as flattering as it is to have someone stare at me... it isn't." She spoke suddenly, causing Wally to lose his grip on the railing and flail for a second before gaining his composure. Her voice was gravelly, almost rough, but it was somehow still appealing.

"I wasn't staring!" Wally's reply was flustered and there was no way he expected her to believe him. One look from her over her shoulder and Wally knew she didn't.

"I can see you in the mirror. You were definitely staring." She smirked at him, but shrugged and ran her fingers through her lustrous locks. Wally was unable to keep from watching the movement, her hair bouncing back into place as she flipped it back over her shoulder.

All except a small group of strands, that now stuck out in an unruly way.

The lift doors opened and the blonde turned to look at him as she walked off. "Well, it was nice meeting you." She smirked again, her voice light as if she was close to laughing. The lift doors began to shut as she walked away, and Wally stayed fixated on the hairs that was keeping her appearance one step away from aesthetic perfection.

He exhaled loudly and the sound bounced off the walls, as he ran his fingers through his hair again. He looked down at the floor and saw the blonde had dropped a paper from her binder. He picked it up as the doors opened out to his floor and his boss was standing there waiting for him.

_'Excuse_ me, Wallace!' Sharon's high pitched voice always made Wally wince and it was even worse now she was mad. 'Do you have an excuse for being,' she looked down at her watch, before looking back up exasperatedly, '_46_ minutes late to work?' Sharon put her hands on her hips, after brushing her raven coloured hair out of her eyes.

If this was any other day, Wally would have stepped out the lift and tried to sweet talk her, but today he just pressed the elevator button for the floor below and waved apologetically, the lift doors shutting as Sharon's jaw dropped.

Wally drummed his fingers against his leg and shifted his weight between his feet, impatient. The lift doors had barely opened, yet Wally somehow shimmied his way through, tripping over his feet in his haste. He jogged through the small hall into the open plan room, filled with small cubicles and bustling people.

Scanning the room, paper in hand, Wally grabbed the first person who walked past him. 'Excuse me, sorry, have you seen a blonde around here?' The man Wally had grabbed just looked at him for a couple of seconds, before leaning his head closer to Wally, as if he was about to conspire with the red head.

'Uh... did you want to expand, mate?' The man's crisp accent clued Wally in the fact that he was English and the man's tone clued Wally in the fact he was irritated.

'Sorry, yeah, she's got, like,' Wally gestured by flinging his arms out wide, '_super_ long hair!' The man rocked back on his heels, rubbing his jaw.

'Wow, that's a lot of detail there, mate.' The man couldn't keep sarcasm from edging into his voice, but he smiled and shrugged. 'Yeah, I think you mean Artemis. She's sure got a lot of hair. You'll find her in cubicle B07.' The man nodded a goodbye at Wally, leaving him to find his way to B07.

Wally was muttering to himself when he stumbled upon her cubicle, where she was typing furiously on her keyboard. Wally knocked on her cubicle wall and she looked up at him, her eyes slightly hostile. They relaxed once she saw it was Wally.

'Is there a reason you're stalking me now?' She smirked at him, spinning her chair to face him and leaning back, her legs crossed and her eyes gleaming in amusement.

'I- uh, you dropped this.' Wally stammered out, handing Artemis the paper. She stood quickly and her hand snatched the paper from him, her eyes wide.

'I've been looking for this! Thanks... um...' Artemis looked at him expectantly.

'Wally.'

She smiled slightly. 'Your name's really Wally?' Her smile grew larger, but she controlled her face back in to a neutral expression and cleared her throat. 'I'm Artemis. Anyways, thanks for bringing this back.' She turned, as if she'd dismissed him. He grabbed her wrist, turning her back to face him.

'I'm sorry, but you've got a little...' Wally gestured to her hair, which she touched self consciously.

'A little what?' She narrowed her eyes dangerously, as she patted her golden mane of hair.

'A..., ugh.' Wally reached over and straightened out the strands of hair that he hadn't been able to stop thinking about since she exited the lift. 'There we go. Beautiful.' Their eyes met and locked for a couple of seconds, before Wally took a step back. 'Ah, I know you probably get this a lot, but do you wanna grab food sometime?' Wally met her steel eyes again, as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

'Don't you have a job to do in this building, Wally?' Artemis was unable to keep from smiling, raising an eyebrow at him.

'I'm probably fired.' He shrugged at her, his arms wide in an honest gesture.

'So you're free now?' Her smile was wide and bright now, and Wally was unable to take his eyes off the blonde bombshell in front of him. He nodded eagerly. 'Good, because I am starved. Know any good places to eat?'

Wally knew all the good places to eat.


	3. One For The Road

Okay, so, basically, Wally is a superhero, but the team was never formed and he just works with Flash. But, they still go through Mount Justice, which is why Wally still has his designation. Arty isn't a superhero, but is still an archer. The reason Wally is in this situation is a bit hazy, but I just wanted to get to the story instead of explaining, apologies.

Each italicized word signifies the change between their perspective, switching between the two of them. If that's not very clear to anybody, leave it in the review and I'll put their initials at the start. I haven't done it already, because I thought it slowed the pace down a bit. But, if it proves difficult to read, just let me know!

* * *

_"Shit,'_ Wally whispered, shivering as he waited at the bus stop. His solo mission had gone terribly wrong earlier and it seems he'd been left without his powers... and with a nasty stab wound in his side. No powers meant no super speed, warmth or super healing and Wally was bleeding out. Pressing his palm against his side, he looked up at the LED screen and saw his bus would be another fifteen minutes. Stranded on a countryside road he'd ran to at the start of the mission, and with no way of communicating the team or the Justice League, he had no choice but to get a bus to the nearest zeta tube and beam to a hospital. Never had he wanted to hear the hard, robotic voice say 'Kid Flash, B03' so much in his life. He looked down at his side and saw his palm was covered in blood... his blood, and Wally threw back his head in pain. Controlling his breathing, he pushed his palm against his side again.

_Artemis_ had just finished up her archery practice on a field her father owned out in the countryside. Whilst it was a bitch to get to, the field provided a lot of space from her family, which Artemis needed to focus, and a large, open space to practice. Her equipment and spare clothes were in a bag she had thrown over her shoulder. Walking to the nearby bus stop, she took her hair tie out and flipped her hair back over her shoulders, instantly grateful for the trapped heat warming her head. She was fully wrapped up in a coat, scarf and gloves, and she shivered in the 32 degrees Fahrenheit temperature. Picking up the pace, she wrapped her arms around her and soon approached the bus stop. Gingerly, she walked closer and was alarmed to see a red-headed boy standing there in a yellow, short sleeved t-shirt, shivering at a vicious speed. As Artemis approached him, she saw his fingers and lips were blue and his teeth were chattering. He hadn't seemed to notice her yet; his eyes were closed and his head was tilted up, towards the sky, as if he were praying. Glancing up at the screen, Artemis saw there were fifteen minutes until the bus was scheduled to arrive. Standing awkwardly behind him, Artemis cleared her throat and he jumped, startled by the sound.

_Wally_ stepped away from her in surprise, careful not to move too much due to his wound. Standing behind him was a blonde bombshell, with large grey eyes. Her slender, athletic build was covered by a green duffle coat, her thick, blonde hair framed her face and torso and provided extra warmth. Wally let out a sigh as he looked at her, his breath visible in the cold. She raised an eyebrow at him as Wally looked over her, causing him to quickly look away, embarrassed he'd stared at her for so long. He began chattering again, shifting away from the girl so his side was as far away from her field of vision as possible. A quick glance down told Wally that his blood was no longer covered by his hand as it soaked through his t-shirt and Wally panicked, trying to think of how to cover it up.

_Artemis_ watched the red head look over her with deep interest. He let out a small sigh as he looked, to which Artemis cocked an eyebrow in reply. He looked back up to her face quickly and then looked away, turning completely away from her, apparently losing interest. Artemis frowned, watching as he looked down slightly and looked back up, out at the horizon, pain written on his face. Artemis watched him shiver and chatter for a minute with a deep frown and then remembered the bag she had over her shoulder. Opening it and reaching in, she pulled out a deep green sweatshirt, too bulky to wear under her coat. Holding it at arm's length, she cleared her throat again. The boy didn't jump this time, and instead tilted his head to look at her again. Pausing slightly, she took in the boys sharp jawline rustled red hair. Artemis didn't notice before, but the boy had bright green eyes, which were cautious as he looked at her. Artemis was worried to see that even though the boy was chattering and his lips were blue, his forehead had beads of sweat and he looked extremely pale. Holding out the sweatshirt, Artemis shook her hand slightly and the boy looked down at it in surprise. 'Here,' she said adamantly, 'put this on. You'll freeze out here in just that shirt.' The boy looked desperately at the sweatshirt but looked back up at her with a firm look on his face.

'_No_ thanks, I'm fine.' Wally replied, lying through his chattering teeth. He wanted nothing, absolutely nothing more than to take that sweatshirt out of the blonde girl's hands, but he couldn't. He couldn't move to put it on and risk the girl seeing his wounded side. Wally heard a small gasp and his eyes focused on the blonde.

'Just take it, its fine, I don't need it.' Her frown deepened as she spoke and she watched him with worry etched on her face.

'I can't.' Wally replied simply, before adding 'It's yours. The bus will be here soon, don't worry about it. Thanks for the offer'. Wally looked away again, missing the blonde's mouth open in shock.

_Artemis_ couldn't believe her ears. The redhead wouldn't take the sweatshirt off of her, even though he hadn't stopped shivering since she'd arrived. Artemis watched sweat slide down his face and saw him swallow. Something was definitely wrong with this boy.

_Wally's_ heart was racing. He could feel the blonde staring at him and he was desperately close to passing out from the blood loss. Whilst his super speed was gone, he was still fast at making decisions and he turned to the blonde quickly. 'Okay, listen to me carefully. Do not panic.' Wally lifted his hand off his side.

_Artemis_ looked at his torso and gasped. Blood was soaking through his shirt at an alarming speed. Artemis looked back up at his face in shock and saw his body language was desperately pleading her to stay calm, but he stayed quiet while she looked him over. She looked back down and took a step forward but he stepped backwards, his arms raised as if to tell her to stay back. He said something and Artemis looked back up. 'Fuck, what happened to you?' Artemis could feel her panic rising and he seemed to catch on to this.

'_Calm_ down, beautiful, please. Do you know first aid?' His breathing was getting very shallow and he leaned forward for balance, to help stay upright. The blonde rushed forward and put her hand against his shoulder and he wrapped his arm against her waist.

'_You_ need to lie down, right now.' Artemis said, getting a closer look at his face. It was completely drained of colour. He shook his head at her.

'If I lie down, I'll pass out.' He chuckled lightly and used her body to keep himself upright. She dropped the sweatshirt and pushed her free hand against his side. He hissed and tensed, his hand scrunching the back of her coat. 'What are you doing?' He spoke through gritted teeth.

'I'm trying to staunch the blood flow.' She sounded distracted as she told him and she picked up her bag and rifled through it, pulling out a shirt. She scrunched it up in her hand and pressed it against his side. Wally tensed hard again, pulling her closer and burying his face in her shoulder.

'_I_ know, I know, I'm sorry.' One of his hands grabbed the one holding the shirt, so Artemis gave it to him to press against his torso. 'I'm going to call 911.' She pulled out her phone and dialed, but just got the dialing tone. Holding it at arm's length, her blood went cold when she saw that her phone had no service. 'Shit shit shit!' She whispered and he looked up at her in surprise.

'_Hey_.' Wally said softly and she met his eyes. 'It's okay, I'll be fine. The bus will be here soon.' They both looked up at the screen and it said they had a six minute wait. Wally glanced at her and she was staring at the screen, biting her lip. 'Hey, what's your name, beautiful?' She looked back down at him and said 'Artemis.' He repeated it back to her, letting it roll over his tongue. The corners of her mouth turned up slightly and she nodded.

'What's yours?' She asked. Wally panicked for a second. If he told her, she might try and find him again in the future to check up on him. He could say his alias, but she had seen him without his mask on. But, she would also understand why he was injured and he could plead her not to tell anyone about what had happened. She raised a questioning eyebrow at him and he swallowed. 'I- I'm Kid Flash.'

_Artemis_ gasped. 'What?' She blurted out, and he chuckled softly again.

'I'm Kid Flash.' He repeated and Artemis narrowed her eyebrows as she stared at him. He didn't look as though he was lying and Artemis had seen Kid Flash on TV. He had a similar build and Artemis remembered seeing the boy's bright red hair before.

'Where's your mentor? Where's Flash?' Artemis questioned, but he shook his head.

'I can't tell you. Listen, Artemis, I need to put on that sweatshirt so the bus driver won't see the blood. Can you help me put it on?'

Artemis blinked and looked down as the sweatshirt she'd dropped earlier. Kid Flash let go of her as she bent to pick it up, wobbling on his feet. Artemis caught him as she stood back up and he smiled at her in thanks. He lifted his arms slowly, bent at the elbow, as she rolled the sleeves up and slid them over his wrists. Wally bowed his head and she pulled the hole over, before pulling it over his torso. Wally gasped as she brushed against his wound and grabbed her arm, but let go immediately and whispered an apology. Their faces were close together and Artemis looked up to see him watching her steadily.

_Wally_ watched her intently, pondering over how she had found him in this situation. He opened his mouth to speak to her, their eyes locked, when he say her look away and panic cross her face. His heart stopped for a second as he watched her eyes widen in alarm and her eyebrows shoot up; he was completely awestruck by her beauty. He slowly turned his head to see what had caught her attention and watched as the bus drove towards them. 'Artemis, are you listening to me?' Wally spun back round, speaking with a low voice. She nodded in confirmation. 'Can you pay for the both of us?' She nodded again. 'Okay, we're going to sit together. I need to sit in the window seat. I'm going to struggle to sit down and might need you to help me without making it obvious. Okay, beautiful?' She eyes flitted to his at the last word. 'Okay, firehead.' She responded.

_The_ journey was long, but without incident, as Artemis watching Wally closely all the while. He controlled his breathing and kept his eyes shut, whilst pressing his hand against his side. Artemis occasionally heard a strangled breath pass his lips, but he always managed to control it back to normal. Artemis began to relax her shoulders when he suddenly grabbed her wrist. 'I need to get off at the next stop.' The intensity in his green eyes seared through Artemis.

'Do you need me to come with you?' She asked, biting her lip after she replied. His eyes left hers and rested on her mouth, watching as her tooth pressed in to her pink lip. She stopped and he looked back up at her eyes.

'You can't. It won't recognise you and I don't have authorisation to let you in.' He shrugged slightly, his head falling back to rest on the chair. She didn't understand what he meant, but didn't press it further.

'Well, how will I know if you're alright?'

Wally lifted his head and sat up, before leaning close to her.

'Don't worry, beautiful. I'll find you.'

_A_ week later, Artemis was walking home from school when it started to snow. The soft, white flakes floated to the ground around her slowly, at first, before picking up speed to the point where she couldn't see more than 3 steps in front of her. Caught in a blizzard, she ran to take shelter under a canopy in an alleyway, pushing herself right up against the wall to escape as much as possible. Watching the snow, the air suddenly cleared directly in front of her, leaving a trail behind it of where snow had been disturbed. Standing in front of her, in full uniform, was Kid Flash. Artemis gasped and pushed off the wall, stumbling as she took steps towards him.

_Wally_ outstretched his hand to grab hers and he pulled her against him. She wrapped her arms around him tightly as he rested his cheek on her head. They stood there like that for a minute, the snow falling around them and their arms wrapped around each other. Artemis took a step back and looked up at Wally's face, his eyes covered by red goggles. 'I can't believe you're alright. I didn't think I'd see you again.' Artemis held his arms tightly and he chuckled.

'Hey, I'm Kid Flash. Last time we met, it wasn't a life or death situation, it was a Sunday!' A small smile lifted the corners of her mouth, which he returned at full force.

'How do you feel now?' She asked hesitantly, glancing down towards his side where the wound was. He shrugged.

'I'm fine. Don't worry, we speedsters are renowned for our fast healing ability. I was fine after a day in the hospital.' He lifted his shirt slightly, causing Artemis to bow her head to look at it. Not even a scratch. Her eyebrows raised.

'Wow.' She looked impressed and Wally felt a little smug that he was able to impress her.

'See?' He asked, 'back to fighting crime in not time.' His smile suddenly disappeared and a serious look poured out on to his features. 'Artemis.' He grabbed her right hand with both of his. 'Thank you so much for saving my life. I don't know how I'll make it up to you, but I'll spend the rest of my life trying.' Artemis looked down at their hands and back up at him.

'Well, you can start by buying me dinner, and then we'll go from there.'


End file.
